"Deadpool 2" Earns $18.6 Million On Opening Night, Setting A New Record

The Merc with the Mouth is raking in the cash.

Deadpool 2 hit theaters last night (Thursday, May 17), and to no one's surprise, the Marvel film smashed the box office. Ryan Reynolds returns as The Merc with the Mouth, alongside co-stars Josh Brolin (who spent the last month destroying the Avengers as Thanos) and Zazie Beetz (who plays the beautiful and independent Van on Atlanta). Brianna Hildebrand, Morena Baccarin, Jack Kesy, Terry Crews, and T.J. Miller also loan their talents to Marvel's Rated R blockbuster.

Technically, since Marvel sold the movie rights to many of their characters in the 90's to make some cash, Deadpool is under FOX and not Marvel Studios. That means Marvel head Kevin Feige had little or nothing to do with how FOX handled the film, which may be a good thing. Although Feige has done an impressive job linking together the 19 movies of the MCU, the Disney handprint on the films prevent them from getting as dark and raunchy as Deadpool needs to be.

Deadpool 2 earned $18.6 million on its opening day, destroying the Rated-R movie opening record previously held by It, which raked in $13.5 million last Fall. The superhero action comedy is projected to gross $305-$350 million internationally this weekend, unseating Avengers: Infinity War for the top spot at the box office.